Richard Gilder Graduate School

Ph.D. Program in Comparative Biology

Unparalleled access to the resources of the Museum of Natural History, including its world-renowned collections, exceptional natural history library of more than 550,000 scientific volumes, and over 45 distinguished faculty members are available to students enrolled in the Ph.D Program in Comparative Biology.

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AMNH Offers Unique Resources For Students

  • Access to one of the world's greatest natural history collections
  • A legacy of leadership in field and theoretical sciences
  • A long tradition of interdisciplinary approaches to research
  • A public mission, providing a bridge between science and society
Featured Faculty: Dr. Nathalie Goodkin

Associate Professor, and Associate Curator, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Division of Physical Sciences. Dr. Goodkin’s research is focused on understanding and using coral geochemistry to reconstruct ocean-atmosphere interactions, climate behavior, and pollution histories over the past 500 years.

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Nathalie Goodkin.
Featured Faculty: Dr. Ashley S. Hammond

Assistant Professor and Assistant Curator of Biological Anthropology, Division of Anthropology. Dr. Hammond works on the fossil record for hominoid (ape and human) evolution in East Africa. Her interests in human origins centers on the evolution of locomotor behaviors, especially bipedal locomotion, which is the hallmark of the human lineage.

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Ashley Hammond in the field.

New Class of Scientists and Teachers Graduates from Museum

Participants and guests are seated under the blue whale for the 2019 graduation ceremony for the Richard Gilder Graduate School.
The Museum’s Richard Gilder Graduate School commencement under the blue whale in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life. 
M. Shanley/© AMNH

On Wednesday, September 14, the American Museum of Natural History held its 2022 Richard Gilder Graduate School Commencement Program under the iconic blue whale in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life, conferring Ph.D. degrees to graduates in the comparative biology program and MAT to graduates in the Master of Arts in Teaching Earth Science Residency Program.

Volunteer with the Gilder School

The Gilder Graduate School has an opening for a smart, dedicated volunteer to assist with many facets of the School’s work. Duties will range from data entry, proofreading and filing, to higher level projects such as conducting online research, assembling and sharing information, and assisting with special events. Experience working in Excel and Word is necessary. The hours are flexible within Mon-Fri., 9am-5pm. To be considered, apply here.

2018 & 2019 Ph.D. Graduate Profiles

Blog Post 2019 Ph.D. Graduate Profile: Jeremy Frank 2019 doctoral graduate Jeremy Frank is building the first evolutionary tree for solitary wasps in the genus Bembix. September 23, 2019 Blog Post 2019 Ph.D. Graduate Profile: Anna Ragni A passion to learn about human origins launches doctoral candidate Anna Ragni on a career in paleoanthropology. September 10, 2019 Blog Post 2019 Ph.D. Graduate Profile: Kelly Speer Doctoral graduate Kelly Speer looks at parasites, like bat flies, to understand disease transmission among tropical bats. September 16, 2019 Blog Post 2018 Ph.D. Graduate Profile: Daniel Barta Doctoral candidate Daniel Barta mined the Museum’s fossil collections to study dinosaur reproduction, growth, and development. September 20, 2018 Blog Post 2018 Ph.D. Graduate Profile: Allison Bronson Doctoral candidate Allison Bronson studied fossil cartilaginous fishes, including the diversification of early sharks. September 14, 2018 Blog Post 2018 Ph.D. Graduate Profile: Spencer Galen Galen led a study that built the most comprehensive Tree of Life for malaria parasites to date. September 26, 2018 Blog Post 2018 Ph.D. Graduate Profile: Anna Holden As a graduate student at the Museum, Holden studied fossil and modern beetles at Rancho La Brea Tar Pits. September 12, 2018 Blog Post 2018 Ph.D. Graduate Profile: Adolfo Lara Adolfo Lara explored the nervous systems of cnidarians, an early-diverging group of animals that includes sea anemones and jellyfish. September 18, 2018 Blog Post 2018 Ph.D. Graduate Profile: Rachel Welt Ph.D. graduate Rachel Welt uncovered genetic evidence for 8 previously unrecognized species of oplurid iguanas. September 28, 2018

 

The Museum expresses its utmost appreciation to Richard Gilder, a steadfast and most generous benefactor and friend whose visionary philanthropy enabled the Museum to establish the Gilder Graduate School. 

Additional support for the Richard Gilder Graduate School has been generously provided by the Hess Foundation, Inc.; an anonymous Museum Trustee; the City of New York; Louis V. Gerstner, Jr., Gerstner Family Foundation; and the Annette Kade Charitable Trust.